USA > Kentucky > The prehistoric men of Kentucky : a history of what is known of their lives and habits, together with a description of their implements and other relics and of the tumuli which have earned for them the designation of Mound builders > Part 7
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We can almost hear the words of encouragement spoken by wives, mothers, sweethearts, and children to the warriors as, girding on their arms, they set out to
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face the foe in a desperate grapple. Fighting was to be at short range. Flint arrows could not reach very far; stone-tipped spears even a less distance, and battle-axes retarded by eight to thirty pounds of weight on six-foot handles meant that foes would, when the real issue came, be very nigh to each other.
The paths along the mountain side were known even in intensest darkness, and the starlight was enough to point where the foe would be found, or where the invaders might press through Nature's rock-rent passages to the plateau above.
Crouched on the huge stone projections, lying on the rock walls with heads just lifted above their line, the beleaguered wait for the coming of the hated foe. In single file, with valiant leaders heading each rank, the pursuers enter the passes. One, two, three, four, five, six pass into the darkness of the chasm, while behind them, with stillest tread, the rear ranks press with vigor and zeal. The three gorges are full; a few steps more and the walls will be scaled. In an instant the curtain falls. A sav- age, heart-piercing shout rends the air, and down upon the heads of those who had pressed into the narrow passes comes a hail of stone missiles, driven with a fury that tells of hate, bitterness, and despairing courage. The men on the parapets spring up and drive a great storm of arrows into the forms of those who have not yet entered the gorge. War cries fill the air, shouts of battle are met with defiant responses. The crushed forms of the leaders cover the depths of the passes, but over these other invaders rush, to meet a like fate at the hands of the maddened and infu- riated stone-throwers who, with unerring accuracy, drive these projectiles down between the walls of the narrow
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passways, carrying death or wounds to those who are forcing their way upward. Up the stone-clad sides of the mountain other lines press, to meet great masses of stone hurled along the rough sides and bounding from point to point, striking down every human form which resists their downward path, while the bowmen send along with these mightier agencies of death a stream of arrows, and the spearmen, planting themselves a little below the parapet heights, hurl long, stone-tipped spears into the masses which are climbing upward to reach the summit of the walls.
Every available reserve of the defenders had been rushed to the point of assailment; as they run, with the speed of the wind, they can hear the shouts of battle, and quickened by war's zeal and fury, they join in the fray. Mothers and children, listening with frenzied fear, had crowded down close to the place of conflict, and they too join in the outcry and the defiant shouts which break the stillness of the night scene far up the sides of the mountain. These warring armies do not speak the same language, but instinct as well as reason interprets the words which both armies shout one to the other, and they need no interpreter on either side to say that each side means death to the other by every means at com- mand.
Nature now begins to lend light upon the places of carnage and death, and, looking along the east over the hills of the bluegrass, they see the coming rays of day, which the Sun God sends to speak to his children and again assure them of his love and protecting care, and as glori- ous beams of light drive the darkness away, these children of his see before them the havoc and ruin of the night.
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Wounded and dead all but fill the narrow passways, the parapets are strewn with foes who, a few moments before in death grapple, now lie stark and still in the gloom of death. The wounded crawl away from the battle line over the parapet or down the sloping sides of the moun- tain; yet brave men still rush up the blood-crowned sides, and others, equally as brave, wave defiantly their weapons and bid the invaders come on to the death-dealing onslaught. Honors are yet even. Neither side has been victorious. The invaders, checked, still assault the fort, and the defenders, with a great death list behind them, yet hold the projecting crags. Surer aim comes with the light. The men who had through the hours of the night hurled the stones upon the heads of the invading army now are the targets for the skilled bowmen of the assail- ing forces, and one by one they fall before the unerring aim of the sharpshooters who, half protected by the trees, send their sharp-pointed missiles as death's messen- gers into their midst. Wounded, many topple and fall, and yet others, dead, roll over the stone projections upon the bodies of the invaders which have half filled their spaces, and friend and foe, mingled in living and dying mass, grapple with each other in one last struggle for supremacy, and together die in defiant and embittered embrace.
The costly sacrifice is not yet to end. Another effort is to be made, and the brave leaders who have escaped the touch of death direct one more charge. There is no call for rest. The axmen are to lead a forlorn hope. The bowmen send a great cloud of arrows over and against the parapet. The spearmen in solid line lead another charge, and behind these the axmen, burdened with
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AX OF GRANITE MAUL OF GRANITE
Length, ten and one half inches
LARGE GROOVED AXES OF GRANITE Weighing ten and twelve pounds respectively. From Mound in Louisville Colonel R. T. Durrett's collection
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D
GROOVED AXES
CELTS
Length, eight inches. From Green County
STONE AXES Weight of Ax in left corner, thirty pounds. Weight of Ax in right corner, thirty-two pounds From Warren County From Christian County
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Slate Tomahawk Trigg County
Grooved Ax Wayne County
Slate Tomahawk Trigg County
Ax of Slate, with Skeleton in Relief Pulaski County
Ax of Quartzite Eastern Kentucky
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their heavy weapons, clamber up the sides of the rocky wall, here and there crushing the skull of a wounded enemy who had rolled down the declivity and lay pros- trate amongst his wounded foes. No voice of mercy touches a single impulse of these savage warriors, and with their cumbrous weapons they calmly and fearlessly make the assault that is to determine the day, and if possible wrest victory from an unwilling fate.
The defenders recognize that the crucial hour has come, and advancing a few feet down the parapet the spearmen prepare to meet the approaching axmen, while the bowmen, with vigorous arm, from the summit speed their arrows with vicious drive into the scrambling column, and the axmen of the beleaguered garrison, crouching behind the parapet or peering over its top, nerve themselves to face the valiant and grim host that, with similar weapons, are pushing up the rocky wall. So far, courage has not been able to stay the advancing tide. When the front line falls a second takes its place. The bowmen still drive their arrows into the bodies of the brawny axmen; the spearmen who are left nimbly avoid the axmen, against whom nothing seems to avail. The summit of the para- pet is only a dozen feet away, and the column of axmen, ever supplied from reserve lines, presses up the hillside, apparently invincible. In a moment Greek joins Greek. The axmen inside the fort lift their heads above the para- pet; the bowmen and spearmen pass through their lines, and when the space is cleared they leap upon the parapet, swing their great axes about their heads, and rush down upon the ascending line, raise a mighty shout, and mingle with it in wildest uproar. Placed at a disadvantage by fighting upward, the ascending column is stayed, then
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broken, and then flies. No courage, no strength, could defend and prevail against the force and valiance of the descending column, and leaving many a noble warrior with crushed head or body upon the ragged rocks, the invad- ing foe withdraws into the silence and stillness of the forest and leaves its beloved dead in possession of the hated foe.
The battle is over, but those within the fort have paid dreadful tribute to war, and scores of their gallant slain tell of the heroism and gallantry of those who, for wives, children, country, home and fireside, have made such splendid defense of the heights of Indian Fort Mountain on this fatal day.
STONE STRUCTURE IN NELSON COUNTY.
Probably the most remarkable of all the stone remains in Kentucky is found in Nelson County four miles from Bardstown, on the land lately owned by Mr. Jerry Hagan. In 1894 Mr. Hagan was seventy-four years of age, on July 4th. On that day the writer investigated these remains. Mr. Hagan's father came to Kentucky in 1777. On his farm, which had been originally settled by the Richards family, on the banks of Richey's Run six hundred feet west of the Louisville and Nashville turn- pike, there had been constructed two parallel stone walls. These walls were six feet high and in the shape of an L sixteen feet broad, and running east and west and north and south. Beginning at the point which overlooks Richey's Run, these walls were constructed north and south two hundred and twenty-five feet, and then at right angles west two hundred and twenty-five feet. When
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Mr. Hagan's father came to Kentucky the stone remains were in a good state of preservation. Sixty-eight years be- fore 1894 he had sold to a lumber contractor a large poplar tree four feet in diameter, which had grown from out the foundation of the outer wall, which ran north and south. The remains of this tree were present in 1894.
These walls were discovered on investigation to have foundations which carried them down to solid rock, at one point three and a half feet below the surface. The masonry of the foundation was of irregular shaped stones, and after it reached the surface, for some three feet above the ground was constructed of long flat stones about three and a half feet in width and some of them as much as nine feet in length. On the top of these flat slabs, stones of uneven shapes were built to a heighth of three feet more. The stones used for this purpose were of irregular shape and were fitted together by these ancient stone masons so as to make a strong, compact wall. This fortification or house, whichever it actually was, stood half way between two fine never-failing springs, each five hun- dred feet distant. At the foot of the hill was one spring, and a little east of south was another spring, and un- doubtedly this splendid supply of water had something to do with the location of this work.
When the Louisville and Nashville turnpike was con- structed, which was in the forties, it was difficult to obtain rock of the proper sort, and the directors of the company made strenuous efforts to purchase from Mr. Hagan's father the stone with which these walls had been con- structed. Other people from time to time endeavored to buy this stone for the purpose of building chimneys and foundations, but the elder Hagan took the ground that
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these were curious and unusual remains-as nobody knew what they were used for-and until some one wise enough should come along to tell the purpose for which they were erected they ought not to be dismantled. The younger Mr. Hagan, being importuned by the directors, consented to sell the stone for three hundred and fifty dollars and a pass for himself and family during life over the turnpike. Hundreds of wagon-loads of stone were hauled away and put into the pike, and the flat stones which constructed the wall for the first two or three feet were used in mak- ing caps for foundations, and were also in a large measure supplied to the Louisville and Nashville turnpike for making culverts for many miles north and south of this property. In Mr. Hagan's barn, the houses of his neighbors, and in the chimney are still be to found flat stones, taken from this place.
For a considerable space between the two stone walls was laid a stone floor. On this floor in two places were found evidences of fire. It is certain that fires had a number of times been built on this floor. There was no chimney or fireplace. If used for a dwelling, the smoke, as was customary in the houses of these people, could find an outlet only through the roof. Mr. Hagan remem- bered the size and shape of the walls perfectly, and their length can now be determined by the remains which are still found. The only part which the explorer could inves- tigate was the foundation. The remainder had been taken away.
The walls of the foundation are four feet thick, and the earth had been removed down to the original rock and the masonry constructed on a smooth surface. The stones bear no indications of any metal instruments.
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They were laid with great care and skill, in regular layers. Some of the stones entering into the foundation weigh as much as a thousand pounds. They are a foot thick, and are of the width of the whole wall. Where the large stones are of irregular shape, they were built up so as to make a smooth finished surface, the out- side presenting a straight line. These foundations varied in depth from two and one half to three and one half feet. Some of the stones which entered into this founda- tion could not have been taken from any quarry immedi- ately contiguous to the property, but within the last few years a quarry has been opened a mile and a half distant, which contains stone of the same kind as is found in these walls. Many of these large stones had been brought a considerable distance. The writer saw removed three or four which weighed from eight hundred to one thousand pounds. They had been carried on hand-spikes held by men, or possibly moved on skids when the ground was frozen, which would have made traction easy. Why two parallel walls should have been built in the shape of an L for four hundred and fifty feet, sixteen feet apart, could not be very easily determined, and it was another remarkable fact that quite a portion of the space between the walls had been covered with a stone floor. As said before, these showed numerous traces of fire. On the whole the writer is disposed to think that it was a stone mansion or residence for a large number of people; that across these walls had been placed timbers. The roof had been covered with cane or reeds, probably plastered over with clay, and the spaces between had been used as a dwelling by these early inhabitants of Kentucky.
The location, strategically viewed from a military
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standpoint, could have had no particular value. The ground on which it was built is no higher than many sur- rounding points, and it could have been approached easily on a level from all sides except from the east, and with the timber growing around it, it could offer no advantages for discovering the advancing foe.
As to the antiquity of these remains there can be no doubt. Mr. Hagan's father settled the place about 1777. When he came it was ancient, and nobody could give any account of it. The poplar tree spoken of grew out of the foundation and lifted a portion of it up more than three feet, and its growth showed certainly more than one hundred years, so that the foundation of this forti- fication or house, whichever it might be, must have been erected as early as 1677-how many years prior to that time no man may say. It is a source of great regret that it was ever disturbed at all. Had it remained as it was in 1850, we could have found many things in connection with it which would have thrown some light upon the customs and habits of the people who had constructed it, and who had so long before passed into the silence and oblivion of the ages.
PREHISTORIC DRESS.
If it be true that the people who builded the mounds, erected the forts, constructed the graves and temples of worship in Kentucky were the same as the Red Indian, then beginning four hundred years ago we have numer- ous and accurate accounts of how they dressed. The authorities are so numerous that it is hardly necessary in a statement such as this to quote them.
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Their clothing was prepared in three ways, or gen- erally of three materials; first, of the skins of animals tanned by different methods, sometimes smooth without the hair and again with the hair retained; second, they were made from a combination of cloth and feathers; and third, they were woven into cloth of cat-tail, wild flax, and the bark or lining of the bark of many trees, notably the mulberry, papaw, and linn. Sometimes they used the hair from the buffalo, bear, and other animals so as to weave a cloth with hemp, flag, or bark basis for support. The making of cloth of several kinds in Kentucky is assured beyond all question by specimens which are found at the present time. In the last few months in Salts Cave have been discovered slippers, fragments of blankets or sheets, hats, and pieces of cloth of several figures, which go to confirm the knowledge we have of how the people, at least in one part of Kentucky, dressed in these earliest times. If they used vestments in burial, it is reasonable to suppose that a similar dress was used for ordinary wearing apparel, and the account of the garb of the mummy found in Short Cave about one hundred years ago indicates not only the material but the style of dress which was worn by the people who then lived in that portion of the State.
Beginning with the head, the hair was cut short. There has been some difficulty in determining with what instru- ment this was done, but there are in existence now many flint knives, with which the hair could be easily and readily shortened. Head caps were made of woven or knitted bark, without borders and perfectly plain. The headdresses were made of quills of large birds and put together somewhat in the way feather fans are fashioned,
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except that the pipes of the quills were not drawn to a point, but spread out in straight lines with the top. This was done by perforating the pipe of the quill in two places, running two cords through the holes, and winding them around the quills, thus fastening each quill in the place designed for it. These cords extended some length beyond the quills on each side, so that in placing the feathers erect they could be tied together at the back of the head. This would enable the wearer to pre- sent a beautiful display of feathers standing erect and extending some distance above the head, entirely surround- ing it. With plumage of variegated colors the effect of this would be beautiful, and the headdress of no woman of this age would be more handsome or striking.
Around the neck the women wore strings of beads. These beads were made either of seeds of trees or bushes, or of shells or stone. Necklaces were made of the red hoofs of fawns. The highest number of these found in any one necklace was twenty .. As a locket the claws of eagles through which holes had been made were suspended from the neck, and by way of variety the jaw of a bear was likewise held with a cord placed around the neck.
Deerskins dried, from which the hair was removed, were used as an outer coat. The next coat was composed of a deerskin, the hair of which had been cut away close to the hide. The next garment was a wrapper or short skirt of some kind, made of twine doubled and twisted. This twine was made either from flax or wild hemp or from the lining of barks. Another garment was a mantle of cloth furnished with feathers so as to be capable of guard- ing the wearer from wet and cold. Father Lallemant, when in Montreal, writing of the Iroquois wars of 1661-62
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CELTS
Seventeen and one half inehes
Eighteen inehes Nine and three fourths inches Ten and one half inehes
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PESTLES-ROLLER FORM Middle specimen seventeen inches in length. From Kenton County
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PESTLES-RARE FORMS
STONE BOWLS Smaller two are of Steatite. Largest of Sandstone
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1
Development of the Needle from the crude bone ant.
Trig Co
Typical Bone Awts . And Perforators ~ First Idea of Needle.
CARD OF BONE AWLS AND NEEDLES Showing method of mounting. Author's Collection
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and speaking of bands of Iroquois returning from the land of the Shawnees (probably Western Kentucky), says they brought with them "scarfs and belts which had been made from the feathers of small birds by process of inter- weaving." It is not probable that this order of wearing apparel was always observed, but it shows that these people not only made themselves comfortable, but exhibited much taste and skill in the preparation of their clothing, and considering the circumstances which sur- rounded them at that period, their clothing was as taste- ful, as comfortable, and as cleanly as that of the present pale-faced inhabitants of the Commonwealth.
Several mummies have been found in the caves in Kentucky encased in clothing. There would have been no exclusive preparation of articles of clothing for use in burial. These people would not manufacture garments of various materials simply to clothe the dead, but if they were used in their burials it is sure that they were worn by the living for protection from wet and cold, or from the burning of the summer's sun. In the matter of dress it will be observed that there must have been relatively as much vanity among prehistoric people as among those of the present age who make Kentucky their home.
These people knew the use of dye so as to produce stripes. These stripes were black, brown, yellow, and red. The dyes could be obtained from vegetables and fruits. Walnut dyes were used for years in many parts of Kentucky in the preparation of clothing. As these prehistoric people knew something of both earthen and metallic colors, and as we find several colors ap- pearing now in these garments which have been preserved
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through the centuries, it is sure that they used materials which were striped with various colors, thus giving an artistic effect to the cloth when made into apparel for personal use. It is true that they knew the art of dyeing skins and imprinting upon them the forms of animals and birds and other fantastic shapes. If the skins were thus ornamented which were used in other ways than for clothing, it becomes an assured fact that in their clothing they used the higher and more artistic forms of dyeing and printing. As skins were used for various articles of clothing, there would be no reason why they should be made plain and colorless while blankets, reticules, and knapsacks were made of materials into which color entered for their adornment and ornamentation.
We know these people wore moccasins made from materials obtained either from flax, flags, or barks. The large number of cast-off slippers or moccasins show that these articles of dress must have been universally used.
As reticules and knapsacks were common-this fact being established by the number of these things which are found in several caves in Southwestern Kentucky-it is certain they would not make knapsacks or reticules unless it was necessary to carry something for personal use in these receptacles. They would not have woven and prepared them simply for ornament. There would have been no wisdom or sense in making a reticule if there was nothing to carry in it, or a knapsack if there were no things to be placed in it for transportation. The reti- cules found contain articles of toilet used by women. They had needles, threads, and thimbles after a fashion, hairpins, small knives which were used in shortening their hair and also in cutting their finger nails and clean-
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ing them. It is not likely that the paints, mineral or metallic, applied to the face, were always done by hand, but it is more probable that they used brushes for the application of these colors to their faces, hands, arms, backs, and bodies generally. It will thus be seen that the prehistoric men and women of Kentucky were well and from a prehistoric standpoint handsomely dressed, and that they had all that was necessary for a comfort- able, pleasant, and agreeable life.
Their capes were made either of skins or of plaited or twisted bark, hemp, or flags. These were easily and readily colored with their earthen paints, and as their vessels were thus ornamented with the paint, such as they had, it can not be doubted that their clothing likewise suggested the application of the art necessary to produce colors. These people tanned bearskins, deer- skins, and probably the hides of smaller animals. The fragments of deerskins and bearskins found in the various mounds show that when they were entombing their dead they frequently covered them with skins of various kinds.
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